2007 Awards for Excellence

Citation

(2007), "2007 Awards for Excellence", Performance Measurement and Metrics, Vol. 8 No. 3. https://doi.org/10.1108/pmm.2007.27908caa.002

2007 Awards for Excellence

The following article was selected for this year's Outstanding Paper Award for

Performance Measurement and Metrics

"Benchmarking and library quality maturity''

Frankie WilsonBrunel University, Uxbridge, UK

J. Stephen TownDefence College of Management and Technology Library, Cranfield University, Shrivenham, UK

Purpose – It remains unresolved from the literature whether benchmarking is a useful and appropriate tool for the library and information services sector. The aim of this research is to gather evidence to establish whether benchmarking provides a real and lasting benefit to library and information services.Design/methodology/approach – The study investigated the long-term effects of a benchmarking exercise on the quality level of three UK academic libraries. However, an appropriate framework for assessing the quality level of libraries is not present in the literature, and it was therefore necessary for such a framework to be developed. This article describes and provides initial characterisation of the framework developed – the Quality Maturity Model (QMM).Findings – The evidence from the investigation showed that the two libraries which were at stage one on the QMM before the benchmarking exercise remained there; and the library which scored at the penultimate level, level four, before benchmarking, was, four years afterwards, at level five. The tentative conclusion drawn was that benchmarking may only be appropriate for organisations with a existing high level of quality maturity. Much further work is proposed.Originality/value – The research provides evidence which establishes whether benchmarking provides a real and lasting benefit to library and information services.Keywords Benchmarking, Libraries, Quality, United Kingdomwww.emeraldinsight.com/10.1108/14678040610679461

This article originally appeared in Volume 7 Number 2, 2006, pp. 75-82, Performance Measurement and Metrics

The following articles were selected for this year's Highly Commended Award

"LibQual+TM in Lilliput: assessment benefits for small academic libraries''

John B. Harer

This article originally appeared in Volume 7 Number 3, 2006, Performance Measurement and Metrics

"Functionality, usability, and accessibility: terative user-centered evaluation strategies for digital libraries''

John Carlo Bertot

John T. Snead

Paul T. Jaeger

Charles R. McClure

This article originally appeared in Volume 7 Number 1, 2006, Performance Measurement and Metrics